Maritime Strategy for the Atlantic Ocean Area

Atlantic Action Plan

The European Commission approves on 13th May 2013 the Action Plan for a Maritime Strategy in the Atlantic Area. The Action Plan aims to enhance marine and maritime economy in the Atlantic Ocean area. Through a common work of EU Atlantic Member States, Regions and European Commission, it sets out four priorities for research and investment to drive "blue economy" forwrds, while preserving the environmental and ecological strenght:

Promote entrepreneurship and innovation;

Protect, secure and enhance the marine coastal environment;

Improve accessibility and connectivity;

Create a socially inclusive and sustainable model of regional development.

The priorities aims to respond to challenges and opportunities facing the Atlantic region under five themes: implementing the ecosystem approach; reducing Europe's carbon footprint; sustainable exploitation of the Atlantic seafloor's natural resources; responding to threats and emergencies; social inclusive growth.

The Atlantic Area Programme currently supports 42 projects related to those maritime and marine areas.

Background and related actions

In the framework of the action plan to implement the Strategy, the Commission has proposed the establishment of an Atlantic Forum, to “identify the priority actions and projects to be proposed for future funding and that would contribute the creation of sustainable jobs and growth in the Atlantic area, through the involvement of the Atlantic Member States, local authorities and other interested parties”. The Atlantic Forum organised five workshops (09.2012 to 03.2013):

The Communication to develop a Maritime Strategy for the Atlantic Area was launched in November 2011, in Lisbon, during the Atlantic Conference and Stakeholder Day. This event was organized by the Portuguese Ministry of Agriculture, Sea, Environment and Regional Planning with the support of the Atlantic Area Programme, among others. The President of the Portuguese Republic, Aníbal Cavaco Silva, the Prime Minister of Portugal, Pedro Passos Coelho, the European Commissioner Maria Damanaki and high-level government representatives of France, Ireland, Spain and the UK participated in the conference.

As a first step towards making the European Atlantic strategy concrete after its launch in Lisbon, the Conference entitled “The Marine Economy: A key component of the EU Integrated Strategy for the Atlantic Area”, hosted by the Border, Midland and Western (BMW) Regional Assembly, took place in Dublin on the 7th February, with the participation of the Irish Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine Simon Coveney and high-level European representatives.

The Atlantic Area programme was presented as a vehicle, which would allow implementing joint actions under the Strategy.